In answer to the poll, yes. Because Australia's obsession with declaring at 550ish when there's no shortage of time left in the game, because #intent, is ****ing stupid. Almost bit them in the arse at Perth, but they don't ****ing learn.

Didn't want to prejudice the poll in the initial post, but now I'll give my opinion. Voges is 35, never expected to make his national Test team. Then he gets a shot at a triple century (and free drinks at Gayle's!), and Smith declares instead. I'm a huge Windies fan, but no way the Aussies couldn't get 20 wickets in 2 days, leaving a full day for rain. I don't understand it.

I get that Smith has decided he always wants to bat twice. That makes complete sense; his bowling attack seems to always be made of glass, so enforcing the follow on is understandably low on his list of priorities.

Tough to answer the question unless the situation is such that it is tactically a good time to declare, but one of your blokes is nearing a milestone. In this case declaring didn't give them an advantage, and so it's hard to look at the issue of the triple century in isolation. All that we can say is that it probably wasn't a good choice to declare, tactically speaking.

Reckon he declared because he doesn't want to enforce the follow on, knowing the injury history of his bowlers. If Aus scored too much, then even if the follow on wasn't enforced, there wouldn't be much of a break for the bowlers before Smith had to declare again.

Pretty sh*te decision really. Smith seems utterly malleable when it comes to pressure on his captaincy in buying into this meme aggression thing he's picked up from Clarke and Boof, the Channel 9 Box constantly in his ear sprouting their poison isn't helping either.

I get that Smith has decided he always wants to bat twice. That makes complete sense; his bowling attack seems to always be made of glass, so enforcing the follow on is understandably low on his list of priorities.

He could always bat again anyways even with 650 on the board in the first dig.

~ Do you think I care for you so little that betraying me would make a difference ~